This blog was about my 28,000 mile, 12 week trip around the USA and Canada seeing 53 shows of Roger Waters performing "The Wall" in 2010. A further 18,600 miles in 2011 seeing 43 shows in Europe. In 2012 i traveled 48,197 miles seeing 9 shows in Buenos Aires & 15 shows in the USA. This week i will start again and travel 13,535 miles seeing shows in Arnhem, Brussels, Padova, Rome, Oslo, Gothenburg, Bucharest, Dublin and Paris and many more!

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Friday, December 17, 2010

Although the USA leg of this tour is over this blog is not by any means over just yet i still have a few posts to write up and some random things to say before i fire it up again when i see some European shows next year! i do however want to say the following as I've just got home to the UK again yesterday.

Early on last year when i started planning this trip i had no idea how much fun it was going to be, I've done several full tours in the past, 8 weeks in Europe in 2002, the whole USA and Europe tours in 2006 and 2007 and the US and Europe dates in 2008, plus various other one off shows here and there. Its only because of my blog that people are aware of my travels this time round and even though I've done it in the past this trip has been the most exciting and memorable trip I've ever taken.

Its also been a very emotional trip for me, not only because of the shows and the friends I've seen and left but also because during this trip for various reasons my girlfriend and i of 2 1/2 years separated. This was someone whom i changed my whole life for, sold my house, left my job, left my friends and moved nearly 300 miles away for. Things just didn't work out for a few reasons but it wasn't for the lack of trying. Honestly, i feel a lot happier than i did now and i look back and wonder why i didn't see things earlier and listen to other people, but hindsight is a great thing. With thanks to a couple of people (one in particular) whom I've been with during the last 13 weeks i was able to handle the emotions well without thinking about it too much and without it spoiling my trip so much as to not enjoy it. I just wanted to thank those people, you know who you are and its nice to have friends like you.

I've met so many old friends and made so many new friends on this trip that it really is impossible to thank everyone by name so i just wanted to say a HUGE Thank You to the people that made this trip such a great experience for me.

One person i do want to thank by name is Kamilla, known to a few as Kami. I had such a good time and we created so many new memories that the whole trip would not have been the same without you, so THANK YOU!

I have thought and may even make this blog into a book! I've had a few people suggest this and it is something i would like to see happen. What i would also like if possible is that as many of you that have been reading this blog leave a comment on this entry so i can put them all in the book if it ever gets done. I know when i first started there were a lot of people who commented on the posts and this fell off as the tour went on, i know a lot of people just “lurk” and don't like to comment and i understand that perfectly but if you could take a couple of minutes to comment on it it would be greatly appreciated and you would all be part of history:)

39 comments:

Hi Simon :-) Its a great idea to make a book. Would love to have the opportunity to pic up THE book, and go back on the trip again and again :-)Even though i only was a part of the first 3 weeks.But the best 3 weeks of my life until now :-) You and my travel friends and all those beautyfull loving sweet people that took me into the family made this trip something very special, and i will never forget you all:-)Whis you all the best :-)Love from Thomas ( one of the crazy danes )

Simon... Lori and I Can't thank you enough for all that you do. You get great pleasure out of seeing others happy and you go out of your way to make magic happen for so many fine Floydians. We have met so many great new friends through you. Thank You just doesn't seem like enough. I had nearly given up on people and the thought that any good people still existed in this world. You helped change my whole view on life. I now know there are so many great people still left in the world and I have a tremendous burden lifted off my shoulders thanks to you Simon. You are far more than great friend. You are certainly part of our family and are welcome anytime.

This tour would have been great if we had just seen the shows by themself. BUT add in Si, and all the great Floydians, and the daily blog to keep us going and it's magical and unexplainable. I don't have words to describe just how life changing and awesome this whole experience was for us.

Oh dear Simon, we've been buds for almost 10 years now and have seen several different tours together now in Canada, the UK, France, and the USA. All have been great but this one seems just a little more special. There's that special bond and connection, which will last a lifetime.

Well as I said in another comment, you're our Floydian Goodwill Ambassador, The Famous Simon, and in helping to bring us all together in each city made the experience that much more exciting and enjoyable for everyone!

Of course(!) you should make this blog into a book, as we would all enjoy your travelogue and all the photos and the adventure which you had but we all felt a part of as well. The Year of The Wall is one we will want to remember always, especially the way in which we all shared our love for this music and the people behind it, but also our connections with each other.

Si, I cannot express enough my deepest appreciation for you and how you brought so many of us so much closer to the entire experience of being on the road, seeing shows and meeting up with amazing people.

It was great to finally meet you and Kami, I've heard about your travels and have been at many of the same shows, we just never made the connection.

It's been pure pleasure for another fan like me to read about your experiences on this trip, especially since the shows we were able to attend were near the end of the tour. The way the anticipation grew for us as we waited and read the blog was truly a unique and fun way for us to prepare for our chance to see the show.

Hello Simon, met you before the Detroit show with Doug, his wife Chris and Teddy.Doug told me about this blog and I have been reading it ever since. While I was only able to get to the one show it has been great seeing the other shows through your eyes with your comments, pics and vids. Have thoroughly enjoyed them and look forward to reading about the European shows. Fantastic blog.John

Always great to catch up with you, as We've done every few years since 2002. You made it possible for Eric and I to survive the UK then. Hopefully we can do it all again on this next leg of the tour, 8 years later.

I'll never forget the expression on your face when we met up this year in Chicago. "Joe!! You just come out of nowhere!" That's how I do it. It was a great, HOT, day in the city. Thank's for spreadin' the Chi! :)

You've been a really good friend to me, too, Simon, and I wouldn't have been able to go to the places we went to or meet the people we did without you. I keep telling you - don't under-value yourself - and I mean it! I will always appreciate the long car rides and chats and all the silliness we shared with our friends, as well the "fun" of finishing my thesis on the road! I was more than happy to lend my shoulder and ears, but you know you did the same for me. Certain things in life don't have an easy, fast road to recovery, but with the support of good friends, it gets easier everyday.

Si,I've experienced the tour through you. I feel as if I was with you every step of the way. I am so looking forward to seeing the show myself next year.. I really cant wait.Thanks for all your observations and photos..that you shared with us all. It's been a great ride!See you soon, I hope.Jackie x

…Just wanted to say ‘A Big Thank You’ Simon for this brilliant blog! I’ve been following it since before the 1st show & every entry/photo/video since! I personally love all the ‘techie’ stuff & you've done a great job of mixing in the technical with the ‘Fans Review’ angle plus the very informative travel/tourist stuff – Great! And of course the ‘Unveilings’:)

Great to be a literal part of the journey with you as well as reading it from the sidelines. I don't even think it's possible for me to think of Rog without also thinking of you and that says a lot considering my partner in crime. We'll meet again some sunny day!

Hi Si, I enjoyed your blog, the book sounds like a great idea. Don't forget to include strange pixs. Yes, I'm a lurker, but I've posted a few times here.It was great to meet you, total stranger. The first time in Boston, I'm lucky I remembered the bar name, it began with an H......Frank was looking at me, what do you mean, don't you remember the name? I enjoyed the shows, 3 were good, maybe 5 would have been better.We'll meet again.Cheersjoe (and joan, and Frank)

I also been lurking this blog and yes, turn it into a book. You have posted so many great pics, reviewed the concerts and a lot of funny tourist memories. It's been a real pleasure to follow you around the continent ;)Will you be doing something similar on the European leg of the tour?

Simon, it was wonderful to see my dear friend again and this time be able to take in a show together. The Wall has been incredibly influential in my life, my Pink Floyd path was started about thirty years ago when a neighbor invited me to go along to the movies with him and see the film version of The Wall. Having not been a fan at that point I went along for the ride and the experience wound up changing my life forever. On that day I veered off my path in a new direction and along the way I have met so many wonderful people and fellow fans. The greatest has been you. I cant tell you how much your friendship and tutoring has been such a positive influence on me. I wouldnt be where I am today without your help over the past eleven years.

Maybe a city on the Euro tour if I can arrange it. I just might knock on your door next year.

Well now, a book is a fabulous idea and you should definitely pursue that! I just wanted to say that YOU made this tour so incredible, so memorable, so much fun and we will never forget the memories we made. Thank you for introducing us to such wonderful people, we have several new friends thanks to you. I will never forget that night in Denver when we got to have you all to ourselves! We really enjoyed that time and feel like we got to know you so much better. Plus the drinks were great (until the next day :). The bull riding was my favorite! I have so many pictures of bulls now from vacation, I must send them to you. Thank you for staying with us while you were here. We really enjoyed having you and you are a perfect house-guest. You are welcome to come back anytime and reclaim your room. I believe Greg lovingly referred to it as "The Wimpenny Suite". From the bottom of my heart I want to thank you for introducing us to so many great people, pulling us out of the back for the first Ft. Lauderdale tour and bringing us straight to the front! AH, that was the BEST! Mostly thanks for being such a good, kind-hearted person who takes such pleasure in seeing others have a blast! We certainly did, thanks to you and all of our other friends.

It has been a great pleasure to have met you in Toronto as well as the other cities we met and to have been able to see you at the last US stop in Anaheim. Your blog has been very interesting and entertaining to read. I am glad your travels have been safe and wish you luck in the future and hope we get to meet again some sunny day. Your show reviews were great and you adventure was fantastic. It was very exciting to have been a part of them. If your ever in Chicago, please contact meand we can go out for some good food and a fine time.

As in 2007 it was great to see you at the start of this Wall Live 2010 tour in Toronto for the first 3 dates. And thanks for coming to the 9-14 pre-show meet up at the Omonia and thanks even more for sharing your Wall Live tour stories and pictures via this blog.

This tour has been the best one ever, not only because they were the best shows ever, but mainly for all the nice people we met along the way, most of whom I got to know thanks to you and I can only be ever greatful for that.

The 3 Toronto and 2 Chicago shows will forever be among my best memories ever. It was very sad to leave the tour after "only" 10 days, but it was a good consolation that I could follow this tour vicariously through your blog.

Good luck with the book and even more luck for the return to "normal" life...

I won't forget opening night in Toronto when you, Michael and I were standing together at our seats before the house lights went down, soaking in the energy and excitement, and we saw Brent walk out with his grocery cart for the first time. A pure "WTF?" moment before it became clear he was part of the show - and what a show it turned out to be – more than any of us could have imagined. Bravo to Roger, the band and the entire crew for giving us The Greatest Show On Earth once again. ☺

As happened with the Dark Side tour, your good fortune of being able to see almost all the North American shows also gave you the ability to gradually experience many apparent and subtle things that those of us who were only able to attend one, two or even a handful of shows couldn't take in due to the sheer magnitude of it all, on a sensory, emotional and intellectual level. Your blog has given everyone an opportunity to experience what they may have missed through you, and that was a definite gift to all your readers.

The secondary part of the story of your travels across the US and Canada added to the color of your 28,000 mile journey, and was quite entertaining. Seeing pics of the meet-ups with other FFs really has underscored how special these times are for many of us. Having this put together in book form will be a treasure for many to relive special memories long after this tour ends.

To quote my recent RWO message board post (with some added flourishes and more run-on sentences, as well as proper spellchecking):

Thank you for sharing this wonderful experience with us all through your blog, which has been a fantastic read over these last few months.

And thanks for allowing many of us to be a part of a kind of zeitgeist for this group of folks who, for many of us over the years, have been fairly isolated and unknown from the rest of the daily contributors on the RWO message board. It's been nice meeting a number of the regular lurkers during this tour and you've done a great job unmasking many of us for each other from around the country.

I'm hoping you were able to see how your generosity and friendship has added to the experience of seeing these shows, which many of us have waited decades to be able to enjoy.

Being able to see a live performance is easy,... but being a part of it is simply magic and you've done an incredible job bringing us into this production and making us all a part of it, in however small/large a way it may have felt to each of us.

You're a gentleman and a scholar and it's been quite memorable! I came away from these show not only with the sheer enjoyment of watching Roger perform what I consider to be his greatest work, but also with a sense of interconnectedness with all those that I was able to meet and share the experiences with... thanks to you and your desire to take us along for the ride!

Even though we've lost touch a time or two over the years, your friendship is ever valued. I can't think of anyone else I know personally who means so much to so many. It was great to see you again. I wish I could have seen more shows and really immersed myself into the RW family, but the company I had was fantastic, the people I met are wonderful, the shows were phenomenal, and it's been a trip just reading about your adventures here! Thank you for sharing.

It was great to see you again Si. I will never forget "the coin toss" in that I have a smaller office than my business partner Jack because of it. Of course, we tell the story to all who would listen. I take solice in the fact that you were the one who, at my request, did the tossing. Best regards and I hope to see you in Europe in 2011.

It was great to see you again since our last get-together in 2007 for the Dark Side show in Darien Lake. Dawn was super excited to see the Wall and the experience was made even more special meeting people new and old. You should have seen the smile on her face when we were finally seated - as wide as the wall! To say she had a blast is an understatement and I'm sure she hopes for a second US leg in the near future.

As for me - well, I have to say it was just OK. I've seen walls before, you know. Whoopee, Roger Waters builds a wall and tears it down. I could have witnessed a demolition somewhere in downtown LA for free! No fancy inflatable puppets unless I'm watching an adult video store being torn down. Why build a wall and then tear it down? That's just wasteful.

Seriously, thanks for bringing everyone such a detailed account of the tour - if anyone was qualified to do so, it would be you. The shows were a great excuse to get together with people I've not seen in a while, as well as people I've not ever met before - in no particular order... Jens, Michael, Suzanne, Maria, Thomas, Kelly, Dan, Gail, Joe R, Joe, Eric... even Kami, hahaha (She gives great handshakes as you know). Very disappointed we missed meeting Bob though! As antisocial as I am by default, it was refreshing to be in a meeting that didn't involve people I wanted to put through the shredder, so to speak. On second thought...

It is a shame the blog is over... at least for now. Expect some drafts next year for a possible book cover, should you decide to pursue the blog book!

Anne and me enjoyed every minute of the time we spent with you and with all our floydian friends. We want to thank you for everything you've done for us and for creating this blog allowing us to be part of your "insane" Roger's Wall Live trip …. Thank you Si.

We've attended seven shows during this leg, and as always with Roger once it's over we feel like "damn it was not enough!" Next time we'll manage to do more shows and meet you again my friend.

As for the book it's a great idea …. we can't wait to read it.

Here is a couple of personal comments for your book:

- WE LOVED the way Roger and the surrogate band were dressed with those hooded shirts and sun glasses during the first show in Toronto.

- At first we thought the best seats were those near the mixing board for the sound and projections. We were wrong!. Best place to see the show is FRONT ROW!.

- My one and only comment to Maria after each show was "He (Roger) killed me!" …. LOL. This sums up perfectly my feelings about the show itself.

Merry Christmas from Canada! Loved the blog and meeting up in three cities! Always great to sit down and chat with you. Hopefully Chris Barrett and I can see you next year in London, as that are our plans, until then take care.Doug

hey simonthe book is a great idea as this blogs offers so much more than the pure concert-review stuff - it's a great adventure full of nice episodes with lots of great people in it - an instant classic. and yes the concert stuff per se isn't that bad either :-)i can see that you had a great time on the road - and so did i by reading jour bloglooking forward to your stuff on the european legsee you t